After mentioning the drowning of Phirʿoan Ibn Kathīr (d. 774h) says; The king (Phirʿoan) along with his entourage, generals and soldiers were destroyed and none remained in Egypt except the general public. Ibn ʿAbd al-Hākm mentioned in the book, ‘History of Egypt’, “Ever since that time, the women of Egypt have had a dominant influence over its men because the womenfolk of the fallen generals and eminent ones married those who were lesser social status than them from the general folk. Thus, they had leverage over them and this continues to be the way of Egyptian women until this day”.

The text in ‘Futuḥ Maṣr wa Akhbāriha’ by Ibn ʿAbd al-Hākm (d. 257h) is as follows:-

When Phirʿoan and his men drowned the women were considered the nobles of society and no one other than slaves and workmen were left. Since the women couldn’t be patient without men, a woman would free her slave and marry him, or others would simple marry their own slaves. These women would impose the condition over their men that they do not do anything without their permission, and the men would listen to them in that regard. Due to this, the women were in command of men.

ʿUthmān informed me that Ibn Lahʿiyah said that Zayd ibn Abī Habīb mentioned that the coptic women do this until today in line with their history, none of them (the men) would buy or sell except that he says “let me seek the orders of my wife”.